


broken pieces and cologne

by orphan_account



Series: broken pieces and cologne [1]
Category: Homestuck
Genre: M/M, divorcee, self harm mentions, will add later - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-16
Updated: 2015-04-16
Packaged: 2018-03-23 05:33:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3756283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kankri and Cronus are roomates in there last year in High School. Both know only a bit about one another, much of which they wouldn't expect. Between home life and siblings there many memories they wish to forget. With the burden of memories, there are days were you want it to end. Others your glade to even be alive. When learning about one another's past and present, will they manage to stick together?</p>
            </blockquote>





	broken pieces and cologne

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so since this is my spin on things, and humanstuck I have decided that though kankri is canonically celibate, he's ace for this AU
> 
> and also thanks to the moirail and meme queen for helping me edit~

Your name is Kankri Vantas and you are now coming home with food for tonight. There was enough for you and your roommate. It had many herbs and a healthier variety of food, one much better than ‘fast food’ which your roommate had always suggested despite it being constantly shot down.  
Your roommate was none other than Cronus Ampora. It had been a little less than a year since he moved into your old bedroom you had no use for anymore. Of course, you two fought occasionally and there was certainly things you disagreed on, but for the most part you got along well.  
Many people seemed to misjudge him. Some of it was right, but none the less he wasn’t a bad person at all. He respected your space and was one of few who let you finish your lectures on occasion. Emphasis on occasion.He had a nasty habit of carrying cigarettes around, but he never smoked in his life. It bothered you, but it was bearable as long as he didn’t light them.  
Cronus was also notorious for flirting, which you saw, but was never directed at you. He tried near the beginning, but after a few unsuccessful tries, he dropped it.. It hasn’t been a problem since then. Other than that there was only a few small things, nothing you couldn’t manage. One of which was wearing a bit too much cologne. It always made you sneeze that was followed up with ‘your sneezes sound like a kitten’s’. It was always something he laughed at purely for your reaction. You hated it. Now you had a habit of scrunching your nose whenever he got on the topic. Sadly it was often.  
The familiar jingle of keys and a click signaling that you were home snapped you out of your thoughts.  
“Cronus, I’m home!”  
Silence filled the normal one man stampede that was your roommate. Normally he would have been out in a flash knowing you were bringing food home. Your attention was moved to a small blue sticky note on the fridge and the absence of his guitar case that you seemed to trip over every time you got home.

Sorry, playing at the Sleepy Sheep evwery Sunday nowv. Cool huh? Sorry about dinner, I’ll find something to make it up

 

-Cronus

You chuckle and smile slightly seeing the note. Even to this day he managed to overdo his w’s and v’s, adding ridges to the letters and giving them the appearance of a second letter near them. .  
The Sleepy Sheep was his favorite bar; he went to whenever he needed a pick-me-up or wanted to get away. Ever since he moved in, he had talked your ear off about wanting to play there, almost to the point where he would match your own self.  
One thing you always admired about him was his talent in music.. It wasn’t quite what you normally listened to, but you could see the effort he put into it. He should be focusing more on his work, but if it made him happy,then you were fine with it.  
Setting down the plastic bags full of food, you began setting aside items to cook for later. You went about your normal routine for a while, when you started getting a bit worried about your absent roommate. He was never out this long. Looking at the clock, you saw it was a quarter to 11 and still no sign or call from him.  
On nights like these, you always kept the home phone nearby. There was one occasion where you had to head over to pick him up after a few too many drinks. Of course he got a long lecture about it, but you were certainly happy that he didn’t try driving and that he at least called.  
With a small sigh, you grabbed the phone and brought it with you into your room. It was neat and orderly, with only a few books out of place. It had a small bed with red comforters and matching pillows you had gotten when you moved in. Your desk and bookshelf sat on the back wall. There were a few shelves with books and various school supplies and some older essays and reports. Your desk was on one side of the window and you had your small bookshelf next to it. Your laundry hamper was on the other side of the window next to your bed. Besides that you had a nightstand and a dresser on the opposite wall of your bed. Simple, but perfect.  
The few times you had dared to tread in Cronus’s room (with permission of course) it was, as you could clearly see, quite the opposite. It wasn’t messy, just a tad disorderly.. A few piles of clothes were on the floor and his bed was almost never made. He had a soft black shag carpet in the middle with his bed under the window. There was a bigger version of your own bookshelf, in the black finish like the rest of his room.. His movies were always in there same spots, most a bit faded thanks to how many times he watched them.  
Grabbing the clothes out of your laundry hamper, you set them into the washing machine along with whatever articles of Cronus’s clothes that was lying about. With a small yawn, you suddenly realized how tired you were. It was pretty late.  
Moving into the living room, you grabbed one of your blankets and flipped on a movie. The combination of your familiar red sweater and blankets quickly lulled you to sleep.  
The sound of the door opening and shutting a few hours later finally awoke your peaceful slumber. With a big yawn you sat up and looked over at the familiar face of your roommate.  
“You were out late. I got worried.”  
Cronus let out a soft sigh, “Sorry, that took longer than I expected.”  
You watched him hang his jacket up, and put his guitar by the door before he moved into the kitchen.

“It’s late and we have school tomorrow.You should get some sleep.”

You sleepily pipe in still curled up in the blankets from earlier. Moving slightly you craned your neck so you could look over to Cronus.  
“I could say the same to you,” he said  
“I wasn’t going to go to sleep knowing you weren’t back, what if something happened to you?”  
Over the movie you could hear him laugh, “worried about me, are we?” You blink not quite understanding why it could be ‘funny’ to him.  
“Is there a problem with that?”  
He laughed before sitting down beside you and slipped his shoes off and tossed them to the side of the couch and out of the way.  
“Not funny just,” he paused, “I dunno.”

You paused slightly before shrugging it off and starting to get up. Cool air wrapped around you replacing the warmth of the blanket before.  
“Alright now that you’re home,I’m going to go to sleep. I advise you do the same.”  
Cronus gave a small nod before you headed back into your room, turned your nightstand light on, and changed into your red flannel pajamas. With a yawn you laid out your clothes for tomorrow before crawling under the covers. You could hear Cronus’s TV in the other room and hoped he was going to sleep soon as well. Pretty soon you drifted off in the soft blankets of your bed. 

 

You awoke hours later to the blaring of your alarm. With sluggish movements you managed to get up and dressed. Walking passed Cronus’s door you gave a few good knocks to make sure he was awake and not falling back asleep before you moved into the bathroom. After messing with your hair a bit and brushing your teeth, you moved into the kitchen and saw a tried Cronus face first on the table.  
“I assume you already did the essay you were freaking out about? I did warn you twice let alone helped you through the processes.”  
There was a moment’s pause before his head came up with the sheer look of terror and regret. For the past month you had reminded him that it was worth a good chunk of his grade. A loud groan along with many words in which you despised came from his mouth.  
“Cronus, you know I won’t hear any of that language. It can be very triggering for some people. There are many people who have problems with it or a past with it and won’t be comfortable with it. A great amount of people find it either offensive or simply uncomfortable. Even then, someone may misinterpret it as aimed towards them and can get upset or offended. If I didn’t catch part of our conversations for all I know you were talking about me. How would that make me feel? You see-”  
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, Kanny I’ve heard it all. I’ll try not to next time,” he interrupted.  
An annoyed huff escaped your lips. You hated that infernal nickname. Boy have you said something about it a few times. Never the less it was never stopped no matter how many times you’ve lectured him about it.  
“How many times have I told you to stop calling me Kanny? My name is Kankri, not Kanny, Cornus,” you scolded  
Cronus let out a laugh before cutting in, “Oh about 69 times or so, and yes I know your names Kankri. It’s definitely hard to forget.”  
Another annoyed huff slipped though as you watched him prop his feet up on the table and tilt the chair back. Walking over, you moved his feet before continuing on like it was nothing and grabbing you book bag.  
“Eggs and toast are on the counter, you better eat before you leave.”  
With a small wave you were off.

 

Your whole school day went as usual. That was until lunch rolled around.  
The cafeteria was always packed and you were never that great in crowds. They often made you nervous and jittery, but with middle school and a few years of highschool under your belt it was now more tolerable, though not great. It still put you on edge and if you were touched it made you jump.  
There was only a few times you flipped out, but now it was a lot less. You were around the same few people most of the time, so by now they had started to pick it up. They didn’t necessarily respect your boundaries or trigger warnings all the time, but they listened.  
Grabbing some food, you sat at one of the less crowded tables and was met with a few familiar faces. First off was Cronus, then of course they fluff ball of brown hair also known as Meulin, your little brother Karkat and his short red haired friend.  
Thinking about it, you hadn’t talked to Karkat in a while now. Over the past month or so he had been off doing his own thing. He, of course, was with father and trying everything he could to move out like you had done the year prior. Your little brother seemed to have the worst luck. Despite the fact you were 2 years older he had already been talking about moving before you even thought about it. No matter how hard he tried, there was always something bad in his way. First he lost his job due to an accident he didn’t even cause, then his wallet was stolen which was a fiasco all in its own and right after you had moved out there were some problems with your parents.  
Both you and your brother had already experienced some of it, but the two constantly fought. Right after you moved out was the beginning of a nasty divorce. Poor Karkat had gotten stuck in the middle of it due to being unable to move. There were many nights you remember having a tired Karkat over, not having much other choice. He suffered from insomnia which made things even harder for him. There was one night you could never forget.  
Before Cronus had moved in Karkat would come over on hard nights and crash on the couch. This was, of course, against your constant nagging to take the spare bedroom. Upon watching a movie, the unexpected happened.

“Kankri...do you like our parents?” asked Karkat

“Well I don’t really care for what they're putting us through..especially you,” you responded.  
“No, I mean-forget it,” Karkat said.

That moment, Karkat rested his head on your leg. His face was covered by blankets and his shirt, but somehow you could make out his frown. Not his normal grouchy frown, but a real frown.  
“Karkat, please tell me where you were going with that,” you prompted.  
There was a reluctant huff and silence before he spoke up again.

“What I mean is...they’re the ones who raised us, right? I mean in our future...when or if we have kids….would you be proud to call them our parents? Their grandparents?”

More silence.

“Dammit Kankri, answer me!”

You were dumbstruck. Never once did you view it that way. Both of you knew that the two of you feared the future. There was no answer you could say.  
The blankets moved and the weight on your leg was lifted as Karkat sat up, sitting cross legged in front of you. He seemed so small and vulnerable with all the blankets around him. He was like your little brother again. You could almost hear the soft thudding of his little feet against hardwood floors going to his big brothers room in the middle of the night. Your parents placed his room right next to theirs, not knowing that nights, when little 11 year olds were sleeping, was the worst hour of fighting.  
From when he was smaller to now, he would come to you when times got hard. Even people like Karkat had their breaking points.  
Karkat’s figure shook slightly as tears rolled down his cheeks.

“I hate this Kankri, I hate this. I want this to be over. I hate that they’re fighting. Why can’t they just stop? Why us?”

The similar feeling of pain hit you. His crying became worse. The big yelling Karkat was crying. Your brother was crying. It wasn’t fair, the yelling and the screaming. All you two were was kids. Who cared what you think. To your parents you were insignificant.  
The once quiet night of movies and popcorn was filled with sobs and sweaters. One moment you were laughing at your movie like you did when you were younger and the next you had your arms wrapped around him, protecting the bundle of tears and hair with all your life.

That was 2 months ago. It seemed different now. Karkat had talked to you once or twice in the time, but it was like he was avoiding you. Like it never happened.

“Oh hey Karkat, I haven’t seen you around.”  
“ I’ve been busy,” he said  
You frowned slightly. This was how things were now. Brief responses and nothing more.

“Well, it’s been a bit since we talked. Would you care to come over for a bit and talk after school?” you offered  
“No thanks. Work.”

This earned a small huff from you. One you didn’t expect to slip out.  
“You said that last time,” you said

“Sorry if I have a life,” Karkat spat.  
“Karkat.”

“Kankri.”  
The only thing you were paying attention to was Karkat. The urge to yell rose in your chest. This never happened. Your brother caught your gaze and got up.  
“Lets go, Terezi,” he said  
Before he could move, your wrist grabbed his.  
“Let go of me!” he demanded  
“Karkat!  
Everything was a blur. It felt like someone just crushed everything you lived for. Of all the people you never expected for it to be by Karkat. Your hands were numb and the only thing driving your actions was instinct. Trigger warnings and everything were out the window.  
“Dammit Kankri! Let go! I don’t want to hear another one of your fucking lectures! Nobody even cares about you anyway! No one listens! Why don’t you do everyone a favor and just shut up!”

 

 

Now you were back home and drained. Everything seemed a blur you didn’t care to remember. For the first time in ages, Cronus had gotten home before you. Luckily he didn’t pick up on anything, and let you go straight to your room.

“Hey, m going to head to the pool.” you said

“Wait, the pool? You hate that place,” Cronus said, sounding confused  
“Well, it sounds good right now.”  
Cronus gave you a strange stare before shrugging and letting you go off. Getting changed, you slung a red towel over your shoulder, slipped on your flip flops, and headed out. Luckily your little neighborhood had a pool to share, but it was either never used or packed to the brim.  
Everything was quiet besides the comforting sounds of your shoes on the side walk. Before you knew it you were at the gate. Unlatching it, you went in hearing an unpleasant screeching of the gate against the ground.  
You scrunch your nose up, loving and hating the sight before you. Thinking of pools made you nauseous, but the water seemed oddly comforting. Setting your stuff on a table, you went to the edge and looked out on the small body of water. No one was there except you and the suns rays reflected off almost making it blinding.  
With that there was a loud splash. Without even thinking, you plunged in and immediately felt the water surround you. It was suffocating and relaxing. The cold stung like little needs jabbing into your skin. Soon the cold disappeared and left only your thoughts. Needing air, you went back up before instantly wanting to go under. Taking one last breath, you plunged under and stayed at the bottom.  
Looking through the water to the sky above felt strange. It was like looking at the same thing, but through different eyes. Soon your mind pricked at you again. The stress and pain of everything and today instantly came flooding back. You wanted to scream.  
After a bit you begrudgingly went back to the surface for much needed air. The sun was almost blinding. Coughing slightly you laid back and just started floating on the water, not wanting to think. Your eyes closed and all sounds aside from the gentle lapping of the pool water were blocked out..  
Maybe you should just stop talking,or at least only speak if someone was talking to you. That would work. Then you wouldn’t have to bother anyone else. You were annoying. No one wanted you. Why does Cronus even bother being your roommate? Was it pity? Is everyone just acting like they like you? How would you even find out?  
You let yourself roll over in the water. It was like an invisible blanket surrounding you. You curled up in a ball, sunk back down to the bottom, and closed your eyes. The water was now your only safe haven. The water couldn’t talk back and its silence was its way of talking to you. If you had a choice you would never get out.

This was the one day you actually enjoyed a pool.


End file.
